With funding support from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and the UK Department for International Development (DFID), SNV Bangladesh and Khulna City Corporation (KCC) proudly launched the “Demonstration of pro-poor market- based solutions for faecal sludge management in urban centres of Southern Bangladesh” project on March 31, 2014.

This new project in Bangladesh intrigued me, so I did some more queries in the background, and here is what I found out with the help of Sahidul and Roshan Shrestha:

Title of grant:
Demonstration of pro-poor market-based solutions for fecal sludge management in urban centers of Southern Bangladesh

Name of lead organization: SNV Netherlands Development Organization (grantee is SNV USA)

Primary contact at lead organization: Mr. Neil Ghosh; Engr. Md. Sahidul Islam (who posted above) is working as a City Coordinator. At present, his main role is to coordinate with the adivisors including project leader of their project and the partners and stakeholders.

Grantee location: Khulna City Corporation, Bangladesh

Short description of the project:
This project will develop, test and demonstrate city-wide sanitation service delivery models for the two main types of urban centers in Bangladesh (city corporations and pourashavas, thereby directly improving environmental health and well-being of the population, as well as demonstrating to sector stakeholders:

how integrating FSM business models contributes to achieving city wide service delivery faster

which roles the private sector can play in FSM and how they can be supported,

the effectiveness and efficiency of new technology options (resulting from other BMGF work),

how to ensure that these sanitation solutions are inclusive, benefitting poor households and workers, and not only wealthier neighborhoods

Goal(s):
The project will be a success if city-wide, pro-poor, accountable, safe and sustainable fecal sludge management services are demonstrated for the urban context in Bangladesh, showing improvement in the living environment and contributing to the health and well-being of the urban population.

Working for over 27 years in the fields of sanitation, biogas from human wastes, waste water treatment in rural as well as urban areas in India and other developing countries.

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Dear Sahidul

The project on FSM in Southern Bangladesh is important not only for this country,it may help provide useful information to professionals and local governments in other developing countries to overcome the problem of FSM in a sustainable way. The objectives of the project includes Improved treatment,disposal and reuse of sludge. I am interested to know the sustainable treatment technology of FSM being used under the project for its safe reuse or disposal. Kindly provide detail information.
regards
Pawan

Research Fellow at SEI working on sustainable sanitation, integrated water management and Water, Energy and Food Nexus

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Dear Sahidul,
I hope the first year of your FSM project in Bangladesh has been successful. It would be very interesting to get an updated on the status of your project, what are your results/emerging findings so far.

Pawan Jha asked before about the technologies for FS management you are applying, considering that you are aiming for improved treatment, disposal and reuse of sludge. Is it possible to say something more about this by now?

I’m interesting to know how you are implementing your project. Are you using small pilots in limited areas of the city? Are you testing different modes of implementation (public, public/private, private)? Are there any informal FSM in place that you decided to strengthen to make it more sustainable? Any insights you can share are most welcome.

Dear Kim,
Thanks for your interest.
Our local technical partner Khulna University of Engineering and Technology with collaboration of Asian Institute of Technology is reviewing the technology. Hopefully by June we will get the technology.

The attached presentation might answer some of your questions about progress with this project. It was presented by Rajeev Munankami from SNV at the BMGF-DFID City Partners Workshop on 18 January 2015 in Hanoi.

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I pick out two slides from this presentation:

They have worked on a "shit flow diagram" for Khulna already (it might only be a preliminary one so far, I am not sure):

Here is some information about technologies although it doesn't say which technology for faecal sludge treatment will be used. I also wonder what kind of bags they have in mind (see 4th bullet point)?

In Khulna City Corporation, there will be a complete new treatment plant and In Kushtia and Jhenaidah, the existing treatment plant will be upgraded. KUET and AIT are working on these in full swing.
Beside these, we are working on business model.
Certainly, it will take time to show something as it is almost new issue for Bangladesh. Citizens and the city authorities are also not in serious position as it is not visualized such as solid waste or like flood or drought.
Positive thing is, they have just started to realize the issue.